Slotted metal stud

ABSTRACT

An elongate wall stud has a slot in upper end portions for use in a wall structure having a plurality of such studs extending between a floor and a ceiling support beam. In wall construction, pins connect said upper end portions of the studs to a support beam on the ceiling, the support beam having a base, a pair of side flanges depending from the base for receiving therebetween said stud upper end portions, said studs slots receiving the pins and allowing relative vertical movement between the support beam and the studs. Said pins include hollow and solid rivets and screws. A head on the rivet inside the slotted stud larger than the slot width prevents the rivet from passing out of the stud through the slot while loosely tying the stud to the channel and allowing longitudinal movement of the stud in the channel.

[0001] This is a divisional application of this inventor's application filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Apr. 4, 1999 and assigned Ser. No. 09/293,074

BACKGROUND

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates to building wall construction and, more particularly, to channel header and footer beams and matching studs.

[0004] 2. Prior Art

[0005] Interior wall construction using horizontal channel beams as headers and footers and matching vertical studs received into the channel beams is well-known. Commonly, the studs are also channel-shaped and both are made of metal, typically steel.

[0006] An advantage of steel wall construction is that it provides a strong interior nonbearing wall that can be configured to allow building movement such as during a seismic event without damage to the wall. Paquette (U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,203) and Brady (U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,760) describe a beam with a plurality of beam slots in each beam flange. Building studs are placed in the beam, each at one of the plurality of beam slots and a screw is inserted through the slot and into the stud. Characteristically, the plurality of beam slots exceeds in number the building studs installed with the beam slots closely spaced for versatile application, allowing a stud to be selectively located at any of the plurality of beam slots. So that a stud may be located at a preferred location virtually anywhere along the beam length, the beam slots must be closely spaced in the beam. Consequently, most of the beam slots remain unused in application. Although unused, they still require a cost to make them, and the weaken beam strength.

[0007] With the stud in slotted beam construction, upon movement of the building, the studs can slide vertically in the beam as the screws slide in the beam slots. The allowed vertical movement of the beams is clearly limited to the length of the beam slot as the screw is constrained to slide within it which is itself limited by the length of the beam flange. If the stud sliding in the beam were not limited, except of course by the reach of the beam flanges, then the stud in beam wall construction could accommodate a larger range of movement than that allowed in the screws in slots approach.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a stud for construction in conventional, unslotted channel beams that enables a wide range of building movement (e.g., seismic induced) and obviates the costly manufacture of slotted channel beams. It is a further object such construction allows placement of a stud along the channel beam arbitrarily, not restricted to predetermined locations of slots in the channel beam. It is also an object that the stud be slidable in the beam without limits of movement imposed by beam slots.

[0009] These primary objects are achieved in a traditional shaped metal stud, the improvement being a slot in stud sides running longitudinally with the stud at a stud end for receiving a screw therethrough. Thus, in construction, the stud is placed in a traditional, unslotted channel beam normal to the beam web at a selected position along the beam. A screw is drilled through the beam flange and into the stud slot, typically on each side of the stud. Thus, building movement is accommodated, as the stud is free to slide vertically in the beam as the screw moves in the stud slot. The only limit to vertical stud movement is the extent of the slot in the stud, which is limited only by the length of the stud, not an arbitrary channel beam flange length

[0010] In application, the stud and channel beam may be constructed with wall board members respectively secured to the beam flange and stud in a manner that allows the wall board members to slide relatively to each other as the stud slides within the channel beam. A pin or rivet may substitute the screw with a head on the rivet inside the stud to prevent the rivet from passing out of the stud during wind load when a wall might bend. The mechanical fastening of the channel to the stud through the rivet transfers wind load from the stud into the channel preventing wall failure that might occur if the stud were free-floating and thus able to separate from the channel. The pivot also prevents lateral movement of the stud in the channel beam.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the 3-sided wall stud of the present invention with an abbreviated fourth side showing side slots in which wall-board attaching screws slide.

[0012]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a wall stud slidable within a beam with wall board members vertically aligned in spaced apart relation respectively attached to the beam flange and the stud and with another wall board member attached to the wall board member attached to the flange outside and overlapping the other wall board member.

[0013]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a typical channel beam showing a flange rim including a horizontal member and a vertical member depending therefrom.

[0014]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a slotted stud extender attached with screws to an end of a standard, unslotted stud.

[0015]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the slotted stud showing a rivet joining the stud to a channel

[0016]FIG. 6 is an end view of the stud and channel with rivet of FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] The metal wall construction of the present invention comprises a channel beam 100 and a metal stud 10 mounted orthogonally in the beam sized to fit in slidable contact therein, typically constructed with wallboard 130 secured thereto. The channel beam includes a horizontal web 102 and first and second opposing flanges 104 and 106 depending vertically and approximately perpendicular from the web in parallel, spaced apart relation. The web and depending first and second opposing flanges form a generally U-shaped channel 108. The channel width between the opposing flanges is approximately equal to a building stud cross-sectional length.

[0018] As shown in FIG. 1, the wall stud 10 comprises opposing first and second sides 14 and 16 separated by a stud back 18 with an abbreviated fourth side 20 opposite the back. Near the end, or upper portions, 22 of the stud on the opposing first and second sides are extended side slots 24 running longitudinally with the stud for receiving screws 120 therein. In construction with the stud inserted into the channel beam normal to the beam web, at least a portion of the stud slots locate within the channel beam flanges. A screw 120 is then drilled through the beam flange and into the stud slot. That is, the screw is not drilled into the stud side but extends only into the stud slot allowing the stud to shift relative to the support beam as the screw moves within the slot. The same screw typically also mounts the wallboard 130 to the channel beam to complete a wall comprising a channel beam horizontal at a building ceiling with a plurality of slotted studs vertical with stud ends in the channel beam between its flanges. Wallboard is then screwed onto the flange with the screws passing through the flange and into the slots of the studs. Wallboard is also attached to the studs staggered from the wallboard attached to the flanges so the respective wallboards slide with respect to each other as the stud moves in the channel beam.

[0019] In lieu of the screw, a pin or rivet 125 with an outside head 126 may substitute the screw. An inside head 127 on the rivet 125 inside the stud prevents the rivet 125 from passing out of the stud and prevents lateral movement of the stud in the channel beam, loosely tying the slotted stud to the channel while still allowing longitudinal movement of the stud within the channel.

[0020] As an additional application, or alternative embodiment, of the slotted stud, a short slotted stud section 40 comprises a relatively short slotted stud as described above with slots 24 in opposing stud sides 32 and 34 separated by a back 36. As shown in FIG. 4, the stud section in application attaches to an upper end of a conventional, unslotted metal stud 30 with screws or any other suitable attachment means with the section back in face to face contact with the stud back. The slotted stud section then converts the conventional metal stud to a slotted stud with the section 40 adapted to fit in a channel beam. 

Having described the invention, what is claimed is the following:
 1. An elongate wall stud comprising two opposing sides separated by a back and an abbreviated fourth side opposite the back including a first part extending from one side and a second part extending from the other side, at least one side having a slot longitudinal with the stud at a stud end portion adapted to receive a pin therethrough without the pin engaging the stud.
 2. An elongate wall stud for use in a wall structure having a plurality of studs extending between a floor and a ceiling support beam with pins connecting upper end portions of the studs to a support beam having a base, a pair of side flanges depending from the base for receiving therebetween said stud upper end portions, said studs each having a slot longitudinal with the stud in said stud upper end portions adapted to receive at least one of said pins therein after said at least one of said pins passes through the side flange therein slidably connecting the support beam and the studs sized to fit in slidable contact therein while allowing relative vertical movement between the support beam and the studs, said studs comprising two opposing sides separated by a back and an abbreviated fourth side opposite the back including a first part extending from one side and a second part extending from the other side.
 3. A wall structure extending between a floor and a ceiling, comprising a plurality of elongate wall studs each including two opposing sides separated by a back and an abbreviated fourth side opposite the back including a first part extending from one side and a second part extending from the other side, at least one side of at least one of said plurality of elongate wall studs having a slot longitudinal with the stud at a stud end portion into which a pin may pass and slide; a support beam, including a base and opposing side flanges depending from the base receiving said plurality of wall studs therebetween, the studs sized to fit in slidable contact therein; a pin connecting said stud end portion to one of said support beam flanges, the pin passing through the support beam flange and into said slot, allowing relative vertical movement between the support beam and the stud.
 4. The wall structure of claim 3 further comprising a stud wallboard member mounted on the studs.
 5. The wall structure of claim 4 further comprising a flange wallboard member mounted on at least one of the support beam flanges.
 6. The wall structure of claim 5 in which the stud wallboard member overlaps in parallel and in staggered relation to the flange wallboard member allowing the stud wallboard member to slide relative to the flange wallboard member as the stud moves relative to the support beam with the pin or pins moving within the slot or slots.
 7. An elongate wall stud section of constant cross-sectional dimension comprising two opposing sides separated by a back and an abbreviated fourth side opposite the back including a first part extending from one side and a second part extending from the other side, at least one side having a slot longitudinal with the stud section at a stud section end portion adapted to receive a pin therethrough without the pin engaging the stud and attachable to a metal, unslotted stud with a portion of its back against a back of said metal, unslotted stud at an end of said metal, unslotted stud therein converting the unslotted stud to an effective slotted stud sized to fit in slidable contact with the member to which it may be affixed.
 8. The combination of (1) a first metal, unslotted stud having a back and an end and (2) a second stud section of constant cross-section dimension comprising two opposing sides separated by a back, at least one side of said second stud section having a slot longitudinal with the second stud section at a stud section end portion adapted to receive a pin therethrough without the pin engaging the second stud section, the stud section attached to the metal, unslotted first stud with a portion of the second stud section back face to face on the back of said metal, unslotted first stud at the end of the metal, unslotted first stud therein converting the unslotted first stud to an effective slotted stud.
 9. An elongate wall stud assembly comprising two opposing sides separated by a back and an abbreviated fourth side opposite the back including a first part extending from one side and a second part extending from the other side, the back and sides defining a stud inner volume, at least one stud side having a slot longitudinal with the stud at a stud end portion and a width transverse to the stud, a pin passing through the stud slot without the pin securely engaging the stud, the pin having a first end within the stud inner volume and a second end outside the stud back and sides, the pin including a head on its first end larger than the slot width within the stud inner volume preventing the pin from passing through the stud from the stud inner volume to outside the at least one stud side.
 10. The assembly of claim 9 wherein the pin further includes a head on its second end.
 11. The assembly of claim 9 wherein the pin is a rivet with its first end flared to comprise the head on the pin first end. 